The Ethics and Realities of Traveling to North Korea

North Korea has developed sophisticated cybercrime operations and a forced labor system to generate revenue. The Lazarus hacker group, connected to state intelligence, has stolen over $3 billion in three years, primarily through cryptocurrency thefts including $620 million from the Ronin network and $1.5 billion from Bybit exchange in 2025. The Blue Norov group (APT38) has targeted banks and financial institutions. Simultaneously, North Korea maintains an extensive network of political prison camps where prisoners and ordinary citizens are forced to work in mines, quarries, and factories. This forced labor system generates goods that flow to China and Russia while foreign currency returns to the regime, creating a dual economy of cybercrime and human exploitation.

North Korea has developed a sophisticated cyber economy to fund its weapons programs. The regime trains 'IT warriors' at army schools, sending them to Asian tech training schools where they can earn up to $300,000 annually. In 2014, they hacked Sony and extorted executives; in 2016, they drained $950 million from the Bangladeshi central bank. By 2024, crypto heists generated over $1.3 billion, with 60% of all stolen cryptocurrency attributed to North Korean agents. A UN report indicates 40% of their nuclear weapons program is now funded by illicit cyber means. This represents a fundamental shift from traditional money laundering to decentralized digital theft.

Despite being a poor, isolated country facing decades of sanctions, North Korea maintains a massive military including nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. While China provides some support through food and essential goods, this assistance alone is insufficient to fund such expensive military programs. The true source of funding lies in cyber warfare. North Korea has built a sophisticated cyber military force organized like a regular army, including Bureau 121 and Lazarus Group. In 2023, these groups stole $1.7 billion in cryptocurrency—nearly one-sixth of North Korea's GDP. By 2024, they stole an additional $1.34 billion, representing 61% of all global crypto theft. This cyber economy has become North Korea's secret lifeline, generating more revenue than legitimate trade and enabling the continuation of its military machine despite comprehensive international isolation.

North Korea maintains strict control over its citizens working abroad through comprehensive surveillance, including tracking laborers through trade companies, confiscating mobile phones to prevent access to foreign information and defector contacts, and punishing family members of defectors; this system is reinforced by intensified cooperation with host countries like Russia, where security personnel guard work sites and coordinate with local authorities to prevent escape attempts.

North Korea is uniquely focused on raising funds through illegal cyber activity to support its regime, including theft of cryptocurrency, theft of traditional currencies, extortion schemes, and fraudulent digital tokens. This need for currency stems from the country's economic system and sanctions placed on it, differing from actors in China, Russia, and Iran who focus on intellectual property, export-controlled technology, or election disruption. Russia and China provide safe harbor for cyber criminals and nation-state actors due to their authoritarian nature. The indictment proves allegations in open court beyond a reasonable doubt using only unclassified admissible evidence, representing the only way the Department speaks about such activities.

Individual citizens possess legitimate rights to engage in diplomatic discussions without governmental authorization. As citizens with passports, individuals have the right to participate in conversations about international relations, including discussions with foreign leaders. This form of citizen diplomacy allows private citizens to advocate for positions they believe benefit their country, even when official government representatives hold different views. Additionally, collective bargaining power typically produces better outcomes than individual negotiations. When provinces or states negotiate separately, they may be forced to accept unfavorable terms individually. Maintaining unified front during negotiations preserves bargaining power and prevents exploitation by counterparties seeking to divide and conquer.

Citizen diplomacy is the concept that ordinary individuals, such as a high school student and a go-jek driver, have the power to influence relations between nations at the citizen-to-citizen level. Through daily interactions like sitting in traffic together, people can learn new languages and cultures while simultaneously expanding each other's worldviews and changing biases. Travel helps people recognize both the things that divide humans (race, religion, age, nationality) and the things that connect them (food, laughter, smiles). When travelers share their experiences, they create ripple effects that can inspire others to learn about different countries, try local foods, or even visit, creating a cycle of continued cultural exchange.

Citizen diplomacy emerged as a response to deteriorating official diplomatic relations. The speaker describes how early participants in uncertain programs can create disproportionate influence, growing programs like mushrooms in spring. When official channels fail, citizen-level exchanges become essential for rebuilding relationships. The Soviets Meet Middle America program (1980s) exemplified this approach, bringing Soviet citizens to American communities for short-term visits involving home stays, meals, and interactions with officials and media. This comprehensive exposure created an explosion of goodwill across 264 cities, demonstrating that citizen diplomacy can achieve what official channels cannot.

Citizen diplomacy represents a post-public diplomacy approach that goes beyond public relations and branding. It is characterized by citizen initiatives that governments have an interest in supporting without changing their character. The government's involvement can vary by country - some maintain arms-length distance while others provide more direct support. The key is finding ways to support citizen initiatives while preserving their authentic, grassroots nature.

Citizen diplomacy combines 'citizen' and 'diplomacy' to create a process where citizens directly participate in diplomatic decision-making. This concept emerged after World War I when public opinion began influencing diplomatic decisions, as noted by British diplomat Lord Halifax in 1934. The Moon Jae-in government declared 2018 as the 'Year of Citizen Diplomacy,' reflecting strong governmental commitment. Globally, countries like Australia and Germany have implemented similar approaches. Dutch scholar Jan Keesing termed this 'democratic diplomacy.' Diplomacy has evolved through stages: traditional diplomacy (government-to-government), public diplomacy (government-to-people, formalized in 1965), and private diplomacy (non-governmental actors). Citizen diplomacy represents the latest evolution, characterized by a unique 'bottom-up' approach where citizens actively participate in policy decision-making rather than receiving information from governments. This distinguishes it from the traditional 'top-down' model and reflects broader democratic trends in international relations.

The speaker describes how he initially struggled with speech patterns and accents, and was sometimes suspected of being a spy. However, he eventually found work as a consultant at a North Korean policy research institute, where his unique experience became an invaluable asset. The speaker describes how South Korea's merit-based system, where hard work leads to rewards, was fundamentally different from North Korea's system where one's parents' status determined one's future. He began working with North Korean human rights organizations, giving testimony at international conferences about the realities of political prison camps and the Arduous March famine. He describes how his trembling voice as he spoke caused tears in the audience, and how his testimony helped many people understand the true conditions in North Korea. Standing at the Unification Monument in Paju, the speaker reflected on the North Korean people still suffering under oppression and prayed that they would one day experience freedom and a dignified life.

North Korea systematically violates human rights, particularly regarding women. Women can be denied access to education based on arbitrary decisions, must wear specific hairstyles, and cannot dye their hair or wear bangs. The video describes how a woman was executed for copying and selling Korean dramas, with the execution witnessed by approximately 1,500 people. Most defectors cite poverty and hunger as their primary motivation for leaving, with approximately 80% of defectors motivated by economic hardship. The video also describes how defectors' families who remain in North Korea face persecution, with some being sent to remote areas or facing execution.

The speaker shares their experience learning English through practical application rather than formal education, eventually giving lectures at Harvard University and the British Parliament about North Korean human rights issues. They have written a book addressed to North Korean citizens, particularly former military comrades, with the central message urging them to survive and consider defectoring to South Korea. The speaker encourages North Korean citizens currently serving in the military to avoid sacrificing their lives in meaningless conflicts like the Russia-Ukraine war. The book's cover features a photo taken during the speaker's time in North Korea, and they apologize for using it without permission, requesting that any former friends who have defected contact them.

The video describes the protagonist's testimony at a National Assembly Security Committee hearing about North Korean nuclear weapons. He stated that 12 nuclear warheads were deployed on 23 mobile launchers with a 3-stage authentication system requiring Kim Jong-un's final approval. He warned that if Kim Jong-un were mentally unstable, the launch system could be activated without proper authorization. This testimony was recorded and broadcast worldwide, providing credible insider information about North Korea's nuclear capabilities. The protagonist also testified at a UN Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva about North Korean conditions, revealing that North Korea spends billions on nuclear weapons while citizens suffer from starvation and collapsed healthcare. The protagonist reflected that while he remained technically a North Korean by birth, he was now a free person, emphasizing that freedom matters more than nationality.

North Korean defectors face extreme persecution, with approximately 34,000 having made the dangerous journey to South Korea. One defector, Sonho, escaped at age 24 with no leg and no left hand, swimming the Tuman River and walking 10,000 km to reach freedom. He became a Christian in China and now serves as an advocate for human rights and the 34,000 defectors in South Korea. North Korea has named him their number one target. He believes reunification is possible because dictatorships cannot last forever, and that the gospel entering North Korea depends on God's hand rather than human efforts. This illustrates how individual stories of escape and advocacy can raise awareness about systemic human rights violations.